Commelina velutina

• Interesting Facts
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Interesting Facts

Description

Family Commelinaceae

Herbs annual or perennial , sometimes woody at base . Stems with prominent nodes and internodes. Leaves alternate, distichous or spirally arranged , sessile or petiolate ; leaf sheath prominent, open or closed ; leaf blade simple , entire. Inflorescence usually of cincinni in panicles or solitary, sometimes shortened into heads , sometimes sessile with flowers fascicled, sometimes axillary and penetrating enveloping leaf sheath, rarely flowers solitary and terminal or axillary. Flowers bisexual , rarely unisexual , actinomorphic or zygomorphic. Sepals 3, free or connate only at base, often boat-shaped or carinate , sometimes galeate at apex. Petals (2 or) 3, free, sometimes connate and tubular at middle and free at 2 ends ( Cyanotis), sometimes clawed. Stamens 6, free, all or only 2 or 3 fertile ; filaments glabrous or torulose villous ; anthers parallel or slightly divergent, longitudinally dehiscent , rarely dehiscent by apical pores ; staminodes 1--3; antherodes 4-lobed and butterflylike, 3-sect, 2-lobed and dumbbell-shaped, or entire. Ovary 3-loculed, or reduced to 2-loculed; ovules 1 to several per locule, orthotropous . Fruit a loculicidal, 2- or 3-valved capsule, rarely baccate and indehiscent. Seeds few, large; endosperm copious ; hilum orbicular or linear .

About 40 genera and 650 species: mainly in tropical regions , fewer species in subtropical and temperate regions ; 15 genera (two introduced ) and 59 species (12 endemic, three introduced) in China.[1]

Genus Commelina

Herbs, perennial or annual . Roots thin or tuberous . Leaves 2-ranked or spirally arranged , not glaucous; blade sessile or petiolate . Inflorescences terminal , leaf-opposed; cymes 1--2, enclosed in spathes , proximal cyme several-flowered, distal cyme vestigial or with 1--several staminate flowers ; spathes often filled with mucilaginous liquid, margins distinct or basally connate ; bracteoles usually absent. Flowers bisexual and staminate , bilaterally symmetric ; pedicels well developed; sepals distinct or proximal 2 connate, unequal; petals distinct, proximal petal often different color than distal 2, smaller or subequal , distal 2 blue (occasionally lilac, lavender, yellow, peach, apricot, or white), clawed; stamens (5--) 6, proximal 3 fertile , medial different in form, size from others, distal (2--) 3 staminodial; filaments glabrous ; antherodes commonly 4--6-lobed; ovary 2--3-locular, ovules 1--2 per locule, 1-seriate. Capsules 2--3-valved, 2--3-locular. Seeds 1--2 per locule; hilum linear ; embryotega lateral . x = 11--15.

Species ca. 170: almost worldwide, mainly tropical .[2]

Taxonomy

Notes

Publishing author : Mildbr. Publication : Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem ix. 252 (1925).

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 21-Jun-2005

Similar Species

Members of the genus Commelina

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 27 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

C. benghalensis (Benghal Dayflower) · C. caroliniana (Carolina Dayflower) · C. clavata (Willow Leaved Dayflower) · C. coelestis (Blue Spider Wort) · C. communis (Asiatic Dayflower) · C. communis var. communis (Asiatic Dayflower) · C. communis var. ludens (Asiatic Dayflower) · C. cyanea (Creeping Christian) · C. dianthifolia (Bird-Bill Dayflower) · C. dianthifolia var. dianthifolia (Birdbill Dayflower) · C. dianthifolia 'Electric Blue' (Birdbill Day Flower) · C. diffusa (Climbing Dayflower) · C. diffusa var. diffusa (Climbing Dayflower) · C. diffusa var. gigas (Climbing Dayflower) · C. erecta (White Mouth Dayflower) · C. erecta var. angustifolia (Whitemouth Dayflower) · C. erecta var. deamiana (Whitemouth Dayflower) · C. erecta var. erecta (Whitemouth Dayflower) · C. forskaolii (Rat's Ear) · C. gambiae (Gambian Dayflower) · C. nigritana (African Dayflower) · C. nigritana Benth. var. gambiae (C.B.Clarke) Brenan (Gambian Dayflower) · C. nigritana var. gambiae (Gambian Dayflower) · C. rufipes (Cojite Blanco) · C. rufipes var. glabrata (Cojite Blanco) · C. tuberosa (Commelina) · C. virginica (Virginia Day-Flower)

More Info

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Further Reading

• Hong Deyuan. 1997. Commelinaceae. In: Wu Kuo-fang, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 13(3) : 69--133.
• Brashier, C. K. 1966. A revision of Commelina (Plum.) L. in the U.S.A. Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 93: 1--19.
• Faden, R. B. 1993b. The misconstrued and rare species of Commelina (Commelinaceae) in the eastern United States. Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 80: 208--218.
• Pennell, F. W. 1916. Notes on plants of the southern United StatesâI. Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 43: 96--111.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 15, 2007:

• Missouri Botanical Garden, Missouri Botanical Garden

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 8600719
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Kew-234259
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 15376192
• Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:172410-1
• International Plant Names Index (IPNI) ID: 172410-1
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 1237635

Footnotes

1. Deyuan Hong & Robert A. DeFilipps "Commelinaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 24 Page 19. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
2. "Commelina". in Flora of North America Vol. 22. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.